MICHAEL ELLIOT BASS's Obituary
BASS, Michael Elliot. When you love hard, you lose hard. We have suffered a great loss with the passing of Michael Elliot Bass on April 20, 2017. Mike was born to loving parents, Ira and Evelyn (nee Schweitzer) Bass on March 27, 1957 in The Bronx, New York. A lifelong sports fan, Mike would always like to say he was born in the shadows of Yankee Stadium. The first born to Ira and Evelyn, Mike was soon joined by brothers, Eric and Danny. The three Bass brothers spent their formative years in Valley Stream, New York and later North Woodmere, New York. Mike enjoyed playing the drums, tending the goal in ice hockey and joining in on any stickball game in the neighborhood. He graduated from Hewlett High School in 1975 and went on to attend Utica College in upstate New York. After spending his first two years at Utica and realizing he was not going to become a professional ice hockey player or lead drummer in a major rock band, he decided to transfer to the University of Delaware. He earned his Bachelors of Accounting and graduated in 1979.
Warmer climates and calmer lifestyles led Mike to start his accounting career in Miami at Coopers and Lybrand. He intended to work in Miami for a few years and then transfer back to the Northeastern part of the country. That plan was abruptly changed when he met Barbara Blum, a Florida native, who also preferred the warmer climate. Mike and Barbara were wed in 1983. By then, Mike had joined Adams Veterinary Research Labs as controller and worked his way up to becoming the plant manager of the production facility.
Mike and Barbara’s life became even more joyous when Barbara gave birth to their twin daughters, Katie Elizabeth and Allison Jill. The family enjoyed traveling to visit relatives in New York, Connecticut and other parts of Florida and making their sometimes more than annual trips to Disney World.
Through several mergers and acquisitions, Adams Veterinary became part of Pfizer Animal Health. One of Mike’s greatest accomplishments occurred in 1992 when Hurricane Andrew destroyed over 80% of the Adams manufacturing facility. Through innovative ideas, hard work and flexibility with great employees, Mike had the production facility back in production in a few weeks time. In 1999, Mike left Adams to become the Chief Operating Officer of LaDove, Inc., the position he held at the time of his death. He was proud of his work there, especially mentoring employees.
Four and a half years ago, Mike was diagnosed with lung cancer. He never smoked nor did any of his family, but Mike accepted the diagnosis and vowed to live his life to the fullest, never wanting to be thought of as a patient. He, Barbara, and their daughters continued to travel the country and the world, seeing new sights, cheering on their favorite teams (FSU Seminoles, Miami Marlins, Philadelphia Flyers) and enjoying rock concerts. Mike also loved fast cars and enjoyed taking his Porsches on the Homestead Speedway and Sebring. He loved the color orange, which was noticeable with his choice of car colors and professional sports teams.
Along with his wife and daughters, Mike is survived by his brothers Eric (Andrea) and Dan (Mindy); mother-in-law, Elinor Blum; brothers-in-laws Jim (Chris) Blum and John (Karen) Blum; nephews and nieces Alex and AJ Bass, Zach, Sophie, Natalie and Adam Bass, Ashlee (Jeff) Register, Jordan (Melissa) Blum, Lindsee (JK) Dickerson, and Brianna and Alec Blum; and “might as well be brothers” Elliot Saks and Jim Disston and their wives and families. He was predeceased in death by his parents, Ira and Evelyn, and grandparents Julius and Bessie Bass and Fred and Fay Schweitzer.
A Celebration of Mike’s Life will be held Sunday, April 23, 2017 at the Van Orsdel Kendall Chapel at 1:00 p.m. The family will be sitting Shiva at their home following the service until 6:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations be made in Mike’s memory to Sylvester Cancer Center, Winship Cancer Center at Emory University or The Lung Cancer Alliance.
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